Contents

Overview

The Quantradyne is a heavily armored tactical transport equipped for both atmospheric and deep space flight,[2] utilizing twin engines fed hypergolic tanks that result in plasma exhaust, said engines being capable of shifting their angles.[1] Dropships are designed to carry anything from troops to siege tanks in both safety and speed.[3] Landings are usually carried out conventionally—easy deployment is allowed through both aft[1][4] and front ramps and its base can descend from the ship.[5] However, soldiers can also rappel down using ropes.[6] Side doors also exist[7] and furthermore, dropships are equipped with extraction fields[1] and maglev lines[8] in case the terrain is too difficult to land on.

A dropship

Early experiments to arm dropships (including ordnance packages for an air-to-ground role)[9] were abandoned in favor of maximizing payload capacity.[2] Still, soldiers can fire from the dropship themselves, such as from its bottom platform.[5] Another example of getting around this was used by Captain Jack Larimer, who removed his dropship's side doors to make room for mounted weapons.[7]

Dropships possess a number of shortcomings. They are difficult to maneuver and are prone to mechanical failures[6] and aren't exactly the most comfortable transport craft, the interior's temperatures usually uncomfortably hot, even more so during re-entry. Cooling units are installed to offset this along with air scrubbers. Restraining bars are present for the transport of passengers and overhead racks for the transport of equipment and/or belongings. The dropship's power bus is also compatible with the CMC-300 combat suit. A user can 'jack in' to the power bus and view the dropship's surroundings via a sensor system, the image being transferred to the suit's HUD.[1] Ammunition packs and stimulant dispensers are also featured.[3] During the Guild Wars, dropships were apparently bereft of gravity accelerators,[7] but this was rectified by the Great War. Dropship pilots can operate alone, although a nav/comm. console is set behind the pilot's seat.[10]

Dropships are outfitted with a signal booster, which automatically reroutes the communications of ground forces in range through them in order to allow for better communications range. However, this process is involuntary; if the dropship's signal booster is damaged ground forces in range of the booster will be unable to use long-range communications.[11]

History

A dropship in a hanger

Quantradynes were designed by the Terran Confederacy and were in use by 2480.[3] The Colonial Fleet maintained high standards for its dropship pilots, the PEB (Preferred Experience Base) requiring an applicant to possess a combat pilot certification and hot-zone certification before being allowed access to a dropship.[12] Police forces on Confederate worlds that were wealthy enough to afford them would use dropships to ferry prisoners.[13]

StarCraft

Dropship

Unit

Race

Role

Properties

Size

Sight

Production

Build time

Produced from

Requires

Movement

Protection

Hit points

150

Armor

1

Dropships are too slow to outrun aerial hunters like mutalisks, scouts, and wraiths. If destroyed any units being carried are lost as well. While it has eight slots like the shuttle and evolved overlord, the power of stimpacked infantry means a dropship can carry substantial firepower. Compared to its zerg and protoss counterparts (overlord and shuttle), the dropship has a faster speed than the overlord despite having a poor acceleration and is less fragile than the shuttle but slower.

A fleet of dropships is often used to offload units directly on top of or near an enemy base. These "drops" are a key strategy for many terran players.

Quotations

Development

A dropship in the StarCraft alpha

During the StarCraft alpha, the dropship was much larger and could carry a lot more units inside. Their unit portrait bore great resemblance to what would become the character of Jem in the final product.[16]

↑1) Reapers are much faster for raiding. In dropping units (like Marines), there is a 1 second delay between each unit that is dropped. In that 8 seconds, to drop all 8 Marines, you can do a lot of damage with Reapers.Karune. 2008-04-07. Medic/Reaper/Medevac Compilation:Cavez/Karune. Battle.net StarCraft II General Discussion Forum. Accessed 2008-04-07.